The Next Parish Mail Revealed!

All right, I've dropped seven hints so far about the new Parish Mail book, codenamed PMX. Have you figured it out?

Here's a photo clue to make it crystal clear:

Image from gonola.com

That's right, the next interactive paranormal mystery in the Parish Mail series for teens is going to be a Christmas tale! As you may have guessed, PMX is short for Parish Mail Xmas (Hint #6).

I'm really excited about this new book, even though listening to Christmas music as I write (Hint #1) is kind of scrambling my brain. It is July, after all, and "Half-Christmas," June 25 (Hint #5), is not an actual holiday.

I'm trying something new with PMX that's one reason it's not named PM3. PMX is going to be a "short story," shorter in length than Dead Letter Office and Post Mortem -- with an appropriate price, of course -- but with the same gamelike interactivity that's a signature of the series (Hint #2). Think of it as a stocking stuffer.

This fluid approach to releasing books is one of the great things about working with a digital publisher like Coliloquy. A traditional publishing house with printing, inventory, and shipping costs is not likely to get on board with a nontraditional-length book and varying price points (Hint #3). And don't you worry about getting another full-sized Parish Mail story. Book 3, a.k.a. PM3, is scheduled to come out in early 2014.

PMX will be a standalone story taking place within the same timeline as Dead Letter Office and Post Mortem, which means you don't need to have read the earlier books to enjoy PMX. But if you have, the Christmas story will be that much deeper and more interesting. It's also going to be a bit lighter in subject matter and tone than the earlier two books. I was inspired by the Sherlock Holmes story "The Adventure of the Blue Carbuncle" by Arthur Conan Doyle. Set during Christmas, it's lighter on the ol' murder and mayhem than the other Sherlock mysteries (Hint #4).

PMX may be less creepy and scary than the other Parish Mail books, but I promise it will be full of magic, romance, and holiday spirit-- of both the emotional and ghostly varieties. Look for it later this year on all the platforms where you can find Coliloquy books.

And here's a clue to keep in your pocket: The Twelve Days of Christmas (Hint #7) is important...

Follow me on Twitter @sugarjonze for more teases, news, etc. as I work on PMX!